Diane Connell

The Institute for the Redesign of Learning’s story began in 1974 when its founder, Dr. Nancy J. Lavelle, created the Almansor Education Center with four students in classroom space located in a church on Almansor Street in Alhambra. With a belief that every student has the ability to “take charge” of their own learning process, Dr. Lavelle established a unique environment, flexible curriculum and appropriate support services so that these students could thrive. Now over forty years later, the Almansor Center, under the umbrella of the Institute, offers five programs that are designed to provide a continuum of care for individuals with special needs and annually serves over 3,700 children, students and clients throughout the greater Los Angeles and San Gabriel Valley communities. These programs include: Almansor Early Childhood Education Services, Almansor Community Outreach Services, the Almansor Academy (a Non-Public Special Education Day School), Almansor Mental Health Services and Almansor Transition and Adult Services/Employment Services. The Institute’s newest undertaking is the Westmoreland Academy (a Non-Public Special Education Day School for students with Autism Spectrum Disorders) located in Pasadena. Our mission is simple: to empower individuals with special needs to take charge of their own learning and lives, making it possible for them to be competent, caring and contributing members of society; and to provide learning opportunities for families and professionals to support those efforts. As a team of a committed students/clients, parents and caregivers, professional and support staff, board members and community supporters, we are working together in a profound endeavor that has supported the success of thousands of individuals with special needs throughout the course of over four decades—a mission we look forward to continuing for decades to come.